Pumpkin Carving
by YoungTruthLP
Summary: Regina finds Emma in the middle of one of her favourite activities: Pumpkin Carving, only to join her and have a go at it herself. Fluff and playfulness ensues. Tumblr prompt. One-shot.


As much as I would like to own them, all the characters of Once Upon A Time belong to ABC - I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended. This is purely for entertainment purposes. All writing is my own. I do not own Once Upon A Time, it's plot or it's characters.

_I saw this prompt and just couldn't help myself. I instantly thought 'Swan Queen'. I love how this turned out so enjoy! (Prompt below)_

* * *

Imagine your OTP carving pumpkins together, and Person A is really good at it. Person B isn't so good, and decides to play around and throw pumpkin guts over Person A's head. This turns into a play fight where they both end up covered with the insides of the pumpkins until Person A surrenders. Person B apologises by kissing them passionately - bonus if they share a shower to clean themselves up.

* * *

Emma had the day off. To be precise, she had the house to herself. Usually she would have crashed on the couch and watched TV all day whilst pigging out on all kinds of unhealthy junk food but today she wasn't. The reason: it was Halloween. Ever since she was a little girl she had loved the holiday and she had made a point of celebrating it every year. This year was no exception.

Deciding to make the most of it she made her way to the garage, finding exactly what she had placed there a couple of days prior. She smiled when the large orange pumpkin came into sight and quickly made her way over to it. Picking it up she made her way back into the house and through to the kitchen. Placing it down on the large counter she reached into her pocket for her phone and placed it on the speaker dock both she and her wife shared.

As music started to fill the kitchen she rummaged through the cabinets for what she wanted before getting to work, ready to partake in her favourite activity of all: pumpkin carving.

* * *

Regina had just gotten off work and wanted nothing more than to rest at home with her wife who she knew had the day off. She'd had nothing but second glances and weird stares all day from anybody she had been in the vicinity of and she wanted nothing more than to curl up in her wife's arms and forget all about it.

Her heels clicked along the hard floor of the mansion's foyer as she entered, hearing music coming from what seemed to be the kitchen. Judging by the type of music coming from the dock she definitely knew her wife was home enjoying her alone time.

Her smile grew all the more wider the closer she got to the kitchen, the thought of the blonde enough to set her and her restless mind at ease. However, what she was presented with was nothing at all like she had imaged in her mind. She dropped her bag as her mouth hung open, taking in the sight before her as a hand came up to stifle a gasp. Emma was completely oblivious to the brunette's presence as she continued carving, her tongue poking out of her mouth in concentration.

What could only be described as a bomb hitting their kitchen was the result of her attempt at carving a pumpkin, very orange and very unpleasant. Pumpkin guts covered the counter the blonde was working on and it somehow managed to end up on the floor, in the sink, and even over some of the other counters around the room.

"Emma..." She trailed off, not believing how much of a mess her beloved kitchen was in.

The blonde looked up at the sound of her wife's voice, one arm around her pumpkin whilst the other held a sharp knife. Her face and hair were covered and matted in seeds and orange goo and as much as Regina wanted to scold her for ruining the pristine environment of their beloved kitchen she just couldn't help but think about how adorable the blonde looked. Her face was plastered with a happy smile and even with the big mess she had made she seemed to be thoroughly enjoying herself.

"Hey babe, back from work already?"

Regina shook her head back to reality. "Oh, yes. I couldn't stand that place any longer. Everybody was staring and commenting about me, which was most unusual."

"It's Halloween"

"I know, but that doesn't give them the right to stare at me all day just because I was the Evil Queen. Anyway, I see you've been enjoying yourself" She said, motioning to the mess and quickly changing the subject.

Emma blushed shyly. "Sorry about that. I hadn't realised how much of a mess I had made"

Regina just waved her off. "Don't worry about it. Are you having fun?"

Emma smiled genuinely. "Yeah. I always love pumpkin carving. I have since I was a little girl."

Regina nodded, making her way over to her wife despite the random globs of pumpkin goo that was dotted across the floor. Stepping close to her she pulled out a random seed that was tangled in Emma's hair before leaning in for a kiss.

"Hmm" Emma smiled against her lips, resisting the urge to place her mucky hands on Regina's waist. "I missed you"

The mayor smiled back against the blonde's lips, admiring the unique taste that was Emma mixed with pumpkin. "I missed you too"

When Emma pulled away she rested her forehead against the brunette's. "You wanna join me?"

"Really?" She asked in surprise.

The saviour nodded. "Yeah"

"But I don't think I'll be very good"

Emma just smiled, turning to the pumpkin that she had been carving away at all afternoon. "So? Who cares if you're not very good?"

"I do!"

"Slow down honey, you'll be great. It's the taking part that counts"

"You won't make fun of me?"

Emma smiled. "Of course not. Go and change into some old clothes and meet me back down here. I have another pumpkin for you in the garage. It was the one I had for back up in case this one failed but I can lend it to you"

Regina nodded weakly before turning on her heels and heading upstairs. When the brunette came back down she was dressed in a pair of old jeans and a t-shirt, something that no one else rarely saw apart from Emma and Henry. When she entered the kitchen the blonde was lent up against the counter waiting for her, a large untouched pumpkin next to her.

Emma smiled at the sight of her wife laid back and casual. "You ready?"

Regina wanted so badly to disagree but all she could do was shake her head. "No. I'm nervous"

The blonde just smiled at her. "Don't be. I'll help you. Here, come and try it"

Emma proceeded to help the brunette get into the hang of carving before going back to her own which was turning out to be a work of art in Regina's opinion.

She sighed as she put her knife down. Emma looked up at the sound and momentarily stopped what she was doing. "What's wrong?" She asked concerned.

"Mine is awful" She pouted.

Emma just smiled, stepping closer to get a look at Regina's work. "I think it's pretty awesome"

"You do?"

"Yeah, it's funny"

"If you say so"

"Hey, that's a good thing. Here, keep going. I think it's going to turn out awesome" The blonde smiled, kissing the side of her head.

Regina let Emma think she was ok and as soon as the blonde had gone back to her own pumpkin she began plotting. Many thoughts crossed her mind but only one really stuck out. She reached over to the bowl in front of her which she had used to collect the guts of her pumpkin and lifted it up. Before Emma could react Regina had placed it upside down on her head, pushing down for effect.

"Hey, what was that for?!" Emma huffed, wiping pumpkin guts from her eyes.

Regina brought a hand up to her mouth to stifle a giggle but failed when she looked the blonde directly in the eyes. She let out a full blown laugh as it dripped down onto her wife's clothes and onto the floor.

Emma frowned at the brunette as she reached up and removed the bowl from her head, calmly placing it down on the counter in between their pumpkins. She then reached for what had actually made it into her own bowl.

"Two can play at that game Regina"

The brunette barely had time to dodge when Emma threw a large handful at her, just managing to catch her in the side of the head. The sticky substance dripped down the side of her face and onto her shoulder.

"Oh, so you want to play?" She questioned, raising an eyebrow as her 'queen' persona made an appearance.

Emma visibly gulped. The next ten minutes were a blur of orange pumpkin guts and playful attacks. When Emma fell to the floor Regina immediately straddled her waist, effectively pinning her down.

"I give up! You win!" She surrendered, holding her hands up in defeat.

Regina smirked. "Yes, and don't you forget it" Her expression softening at the sight of Emma rubbing the back of her head. "I'm sorry if I hurt you"

"I'm fine"

Regina lent forward and pressed their lips together in a kiss that took both their breaths away. When they pulled apart they were both desperately panting for air, their foreheads resting together as Emma lent up on her elbows.

"Sorry I got our kitchen dirty" The blonde whispered.

Regina smiled. "It's fine"

"Really?"

The former queen nodded, her hands grasping at Emma's shirt. "Yes. I suppose we should get cleaned up before Henry gets home"

"Good point" Emma said from beneath her.

Regina stood up first and then offered a hand to her wife, helping her up. Emma glanced around the room nervously. "Sorry for the mess"

Regina just rolled her eyes and pulled her in for a kiss before nestling herself into the blonde's chest. When she felt Emma's arms wrap tightly around her waist she smiled.

"We're covered in pumpkin guts"

"I know that dear"

"We're all sticky"

"I know that too"

"We need to get clean"

"Just a few more seconds"

Emma smiled and nodded, placing a kiss to the top of the brunette's head. A few moments later Regina pulled away reluctantly and glanced around at their combined mess.

"Few, we really did make a mess. You're really not mad at me?"

Regina look up at the blonde and shook her head. "No"

"But why?"

"Because even though I wasn't very good at it, I'm happy we got to spend some 'us' time together. I'm very happy and honoured you wanted to include me in something that you hold very personal"

Emma smiled, smoothing some stray hair away from Regina's face. "It was my pleasure. Maybe we could make this our thing, like a more permanent tradition?"

Regina just smiled, sealing the deal with a kiss. "Of course, I'd love too. But maybe first we could shower?"

"That's probably a good idea"

Regina pulled away completely but not before grabbing Emma's hand, pulling her out of the kitchen and towards the stairs. Emma grinned stupidly as her wife pulled her up towards their en-suite.

"Best. Halloween. Ever"


End file.
